r/politics • u/sweatycat New York • 20h ago

California to Negotiate Trade With Other Countries to Bypass Trump Tariffs

https://www.newsweek.com/california-newsom-trade-trump-tariffs-2055414
88.9k Upvotes

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1.7k

u/ultralightdude Minnesota 20h ago

Good!  I hope MN joins the party.

558

u/DazMR2 20h ago

And Illinois.

180

u/pigeonholepundit 19h ago

The Great Khan was already in Mexico this week negotiating on our behalf.

https://www.wcia.com/news/illinois-news/pritzker-signs-trade-agreement-between-illinois-and-mexico/

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u/maddieterrier Tennessee 19h ago

We need more billionaire class traitors.

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u/BedDefiant4950 18h ago

what is there for billionaires to do at the end but short being a billionaire lmao

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u/Brilliantlight0 9h ago

Pretty sure Elon Musk is banking everything on being the first, only, and last trillionaire. Or possibly being assassinated by the NPC who he will posthumously grant his fortune before possibly respawning if that's a thing in this sim.

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u/The_1992 Illinois 19h ago

I’d honestly vote for him for as long as possible as our governor if he keeps it up. He’s wildly exceeded my expectations and is actually a great governor. I feel so relieved to live in Illinois

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u/pigeonholepundit 19h ago

Me too. Hes been great.

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u/Slaughterfest 19h ago

I just came from a Warhammer 40k sub so was surprised to see someone calling Pritzger this name. What's the story lol.

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u/elziion 19h ago

Thank you for the article!

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u/BackfromtheDe3d Minnesota 15h ago

Uh oh. Don’t let the NCR find out

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u/natnguyen 19h ago

As a Chicagoan, I came here to say this. Pritzker already negotiated a side deal with Mexico so honestly it would not surprise me.

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u/mitkase 18h ago

I think it'll work out for Chicago. I'm pretty sure all Republicans think that we've all been shot by gangs, so they won't worry about us.

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u/spoopidoods 16h ago

If you haven't been shot twice by lunchtime you're not a real Chicagoan.

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u/d3northway Iowa 16h ago

I live in IA and "Chicago immigrant" is such a dogwhistle around here like cmon just call them slurs like you want to, don't dance around it.

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u/hokis2k 18h ago

Its kind of nuts because pretty much every economic hub in the us would seek to join California in any change. Texas has been moving left as it gains prosperity.. Florida is the only one that goes right but that is because people are leaving the state and the dumb ones(repubs) stick around.

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u/RedBeardedBud 17h ago

We’ll see how long Floridians hold out without FEMA and social security

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u/hokis2k 16h ago

maybe. they are old fks reliant on social security.. and took for granted all of the things they got from government their whole lives. will be nice for them to see what Americans these days are left without.

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u/palinsafterbirth Massachusetts 20h ago

And MA

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u/Rickbox 19h ago

And New York

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u/DBE113301 New York 19h ago

Yep. By the way, are we witnessing the complete dismantling of the United States? When the dust settles, are we just going to be 50 individual countries in what used to be the United States? As a New Yorker, fine by me. And all the Trump-loving assholes that live on my block can leave this state for a better life elsewhere. It'll be actually worse, but shhhh.

6

u/b0w3n New York 18h ago

It's basically balkanization, regions will stratify. The midwest is going to have a very rough time. Most of the blue states don't even really rely on them for food, they ship most of it overseas.

Very very likely West coast becomes a region, New England + NY/NJ becomes a region (potentially with a few of the other blue states on the east coast), then the bible belt with FL becomes a region, and finally basically everything between the rockies and the mississippi becomes a region, excluding texas. I'm not entirely sure where places like Michigan/Minnesota/Illinois will end up, either in their own little mini region or just as sort of a loose "federal" conglomeration with the east/west coast excluding all those shitty red states is what I'm picturing.

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u/nysflyboy 16h ago

NY here too. I can imagine this happening, but I can't imagine it happening without a civil war, at least one like the recent movie. That is some scary shit. I suppose best case (other than something happening that turns this around at a federal level) would be a slow bloodless balkanization of states taking more power from the federal government, and/or ignoring the constitution. I think once you have anything official (treaty, constitutional convention, etc) you are looking at federal intervention/marshal law/civil war.

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u/b0w3n New York 16h ago

Start with the independent trade agreements, progress to "federal revenue escrow" where the economic powerhouse states like ours and CA + New England kind of band together and keep them from getting federal funding via taxes, and just cold civil war them to death.

Can't fight a war without paying your army.

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u/Eagle4317 19h ago

And New England.

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u/DmAc724 19h ago

Yup! Would be great to see the 6 states of New England band together to do this. And throw in NY for good measure.

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u/Snow_source District Of Columbia 19h ago

I feel like PA, MD, NJ and DE would be interested in joining if this all kicks off. Wait until next year and you could get VA in there too once Youngkin leaves office.

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u/boo_jum Washington 19h ago

Pennsylvania seems like it may be a stretch? I know there are deep red parts of the state (and that “Pennsyltucky” is a thing for a reason)

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u/Snow_source District Of Columbia 19h ago

Yeah, it might be tough but they have Shapiro and one chamber in the lege. I think the Pennsyltucky parts of the state would try to secede like what WV did back during the civil war.

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u/boo_jum Washington 19h ago

Fair point.

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u/i_am_a_real_boy__ 17h ago

California is a stretch.

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u/boo_jum Washington 17h ago

California has clout -- both economically (being one of the biggest economies, globally), and agriculturally.

But, California is also not nearly as 'deep blue' as folks think, which could be the point you're making. California has concentrated deep blue pockets, and enough of a population in those places to pull the state blue in federal elections, but it definitely has a lot of deep red places (and some of those places, like Orange County, have a lot of money).

And California gave us Nixon and Reagan, and there are a lot of Californians who aren't actually ashamed of either of those legacies.

2

u/i_am_a_real_boy__ 17h ago

It doesn't have that kind of clout.

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u/1of3destinys 17h ago

We Marylanders have a Dem super majority and thousands of federal workers who were laid off. Whatever side deals are made, I hope we're included. 

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u/Fieldexpedient2 17h ago

New England +NY and NJ are close to CA in GDP.

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u/Larovich153 17h ago

I wish, but we have that idiot Ayott for the next year and a half, the Merrimac Valley though would absolutely join you

1

u/sarges_12gauge 12h ago

Yeah how did Brexit work out?

Jesus I can’t tell what percentage of people are just emoting out, how many are genuinely stupid, and how many are bad faith actors purposefully trying to spread this shit

1

u/ExtremeModerate2024 19h ago

upstate new york might as well be alabama or mississippi.

2

u/1of3destinys 17h ago

What's up with the confederate flags in upstate New York? Why don't they move to a state that actually joined the confederacy? 

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u/nysflyboy 16h ago

Has nothing to do with the south, its a dog whistle for racism, nazism, and MAGA now. Most every time I see one on the back of a pickup, there is a "TRUMP" flag on the other side. And usually some punisher stickers and often nazi code stuff like "88" or the Aryan fist sticker.

25 years ago, it was just a "I'm a proud redneck" thing (thank the Dukes of Hazard for that) and might have been mostly innocent. Not anymore.

1

u/PaperTigerFolds 13h ago

This might come as a shock (though it really shouldn't) but a lot of America is pretty racist, just more so out of cities.

When PoC moved into urban centers, whites fled to the suburbs and rural areas around them.

1

u/nysflyboy 16h ago

I live there. Surrounded by very red farmers on the edge of a small but pretty "blue" city.

I will say, over the past week, a LOT of republicans that I know have started spontaneously complaining and expressing their displeasure and confusion around "whats going on". Many of them are not happy. These are the "traditional republicans" who only voted for Trump (2x) because of "traditional values" or hating mexicans, or because "camel toe" or they actually bought that a "business man" would be good for the US. Not the truly cultish MAGA nazis, which are still flying their flags.

My point being, at least some of them are starting to realize regret. The others are lost cause, but when the less cultish ones get hit in the wallet, they are starting to wake up. Even my mother who is all in on the orange menace, said "well, I didn't know he would do this, maybe I made a mistake". I about passed out.

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u/H0agh 19h ago

And my axe!

2

u/Inside-Woodpecker127 19h ago

...body spray!

0

u/awilder181 19h ago

Damnit, beat me to it

1

u/H0agh 19h ago

Never gets old does it?

1

u/TheSupremePixieStick 19h ago

I think NE could make this happen!

1

u/Fastnacht 19h ago

Yepp, I'm all for New England becoming it's own thing at this point. Fuck the dead weight of the bible belt. Nothing they do can't immediately be done up North or with help from Canada.

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u/SeahamEditing 16h ago

New England plus New York would be formidable.

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u/ThickerSalmon14 19h ago

And Maryland.... we need a blue states trade compact.

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u/Draugluin2 South Carolina 19h ago

And South Carolina 😔

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u/AlwaysShittyKnsasCty 19h ago

From a Kansan, I feel you, mate.

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u/cafebrands 18h ago

Sure, this is what foghorn would say about that

McMaster on them foreign imports 😃

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u/Evadrepus Illinois 18h ago

Illinois got it done yesterday!

2

u/needmini 18h ago

And Massachusetts! I am about to move there. Leaving the South before it gets worse.

4

u/ZoomBoy81 19h ago

and my axe!

1

u/_-Tabula_Rasa-_ 19h ago

And my bow!

1

u/worksafe_Joe 19h ago

And Missouri!

Who am I kidding

1

u/thedeuce75 18h ago

New York should get in on this action, but I doubt Kathy Hochul has the back bone.

1

u/AwesomeToadUltimate 17h ago

And Maryland!

1

u/mc_thac0 16h ago

And my axe!

1

u/tunatorch 16h ago

And my AK.

1

u/Tokyo-MontanaExpress 15h ago

Without Chicago (IL) and the Twin Cities (MN), what's left of the Midwest? Nothing that can compete against that: OKC and Wichita? Bismarck and Sioux Falls? I don't think so. 

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u/PDX_Duffman 19h ago

I am hoping the whole west coast goes (but Minnesota & Illinois are welcome to join the party!). Like college conferences, why does geography matter?

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u/No-Conversation1940 Illinois 19h ago

Democratic Economic Interchange

DEI

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u/karenswans 19h ago

If I had an award to give, it would be yours, No-Conversation1940.

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u/_-Tabula_Rasa-_ 19h ago

Perfection.

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u/nysflyboy 16h ago

If only I had a million upvotes to give...

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u/Ariose_Aristocrat 10h ago

New favorite comment...

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u/blacksheep998 18h ago

A good chunk of the northeast would like to join as well.

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u/IKSLukara 17h ago

Return of the Big East...

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u/TiredandTranz 12h ago

Another Minnesotan here: Please, yes, don't leave me stuck with these maga idiots.

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u/Spicy_McHagg1s 18h ago

It matters because this inevitably leads to state lines becoming national borders. What's being proposed is secession and balkanization, not an NCAA conference. We've been following a long, winding road back here since the end of reconstruction.

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u/onethreeone Minnesota 17h ago

No it doesn't. Citizens are free to move to these states, they can road trip and buy goods here, they don't have any different rights (well I guess they'd often have more)... It's no different than different state tax rates

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u/Spicy_McHagg1s 11h ago

States don't make trade deals with nations. Nations make trade deals with nations. 

1

u/onethreeone Minnesota 10h ago

State leaders visit other countries all the time to promote trade, what are you on about?

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u/Spicy_McHagg1s 10h ago

Promote, sure. Once a state decides to ignore national tax policy and back channel trade policy around the federal government, the state is in the process of secession. Make it sound as cute as you like but once that line is crossed, the United States aren't united anymore.

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u/duckstrap 19h ago

This is the way. Walz did a presser from Toronto. We are def going that direction. Walz speaks Chinese too.

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u/karenswans 19h ago

And Washington State.

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u/scough Washington 19h ago

Absolutely, let’s get the whole west coast in on the party

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u/AutumnEclipsed 18h ago

I can see OR not stepping up but WA is well positioned in its tech, agriculture, and lumber to follow suit.

1

u/Spread_Liberally 13h ago

Oregon here. We've definitely been a slow mover for a while now but if you and California get cooking on this we'll slowly get our shit together enough to help.

Once all the alfalfa and wheat growers in the eastern half of the state figure out their export market is gone, they might actually want to act in their own best interests.

2

u/Majestic_Electric California 13h ago

Make Cascadia Great Again! 😆

2

u/scough Washington 12h ago

We’d be a pretty great trio along with Oregon. Even if Drumpf ends up fucking off by January of 2029, America is irrevocably broken.

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u/Extra_Ad1847 19h ago

And WI

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u/StorkBaby 17h ago

WI voted for Trump in the last election, why would they get to join? Because they had one election where they did the right thing for a single judge?

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u/Extra_Ad1847 16h ago

It’s a start - we did vote for Biden in 2020, all counties voted more liberally than in November

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u/EducationalElevator 18h ago

If CA, MN, IL, NY negotiate together and impound their citizens federal taxes, it will be huge leverage against the current president who is taxing us without representation. And they should appoint an allied commander of their state national guards, just in case.

3

u/Lady_Litreeo New Mexico 19h ago

New Mexico too!

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u/Aliensinmypants 19h ago

How about MN and the Pacific states all join Canada? I could use that healthcare with all the stress this is causing

3

u/Additional-Natural49 18h ago

Michigan literally borders Canada. We should do this

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u/Brightstarr 17h ago

As a Minnesotan, I feel like all the Great Lakes states should join Canada just to protect our fresh water supply. The feds have been working to get mining companies in the Boundary Waters here, and all that poisoned runoff would go into Superior. We need to band together to protect our resources.

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u/ARazorbacks Minnesota 19h ago

I mean…MN is geographically in the same position as CA. CA basically controls shipping with APAC. MN would be a great corridor for agricultural products to and from Canada. 

Taking this idea a step further, MN should tell Russian fertilizer to fuck off and make deals for Canadian fertilizer. 

2

u/eat_vegetables 19h ago

And NYS/NYC.

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u/Ok-Breakfast-8128 19h ago

Same. I’ll be moving there in 3 months. I hope all of the blue states bypass him

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u/NiceRackFocus 18h ago

And Colorado please and thank you.

1

u/tommycnuthatch 18h ago

Let's go NJ!

1

u/tommycnuthatch 18h ago

Let's go NJ!
even though it does appear to mainly be posturing.

1

u/fork_yuu 18h ago

Hell everybody join the party. The red states can rot

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u/Weary_Region3197 18h ago

You gonna need a seaport first

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u/WelcomeToAetos 17h ago

Or we could just beg to join Canada. I'd be happier either way.

1

u/Malaix 17h ago

And my axe!

I mean New England.

1

u/hypermodernvoid 15h ago

Seriously - I could definitely see Walz going for it, as he's been a leader more than most Dems post-election, and as a fellow MN resident, I sincerely hope for this too.

I was saying right after the election that blue states (including MN) comprise a full 70% of the US economy and should throw that weight around, and I was thinking of something exactly like this - not only would it help insulate blue states from economic damage, it'd show our allies that huge swaths of the US geographically and the majority of its economy are still on their side.

1

u/Tokyo-MontanaExpress 15h ago

We share a physical border with them too. 

0

u/Drama4UrMama 19h ago

Yes! Even though TeeRump will probably target us next on his vendetta tour🫠

-9

u/WazWaz Australia 19h ago

What party? California can't do anything about import tariffs, this is Newsom begging other countries not to retaliate because... reasons?

8

u/wecangetbetter 19h ago edited 19h ago

he's asking other countries to put exemptions on key California made exports

He's also gearing up for a presidential run so trying to establish himself as a leader

We seem to live in a very yolo fuck it lawless era where laws and power only seem applicable if there's people willing to enforce it. which there doesn't seem to be any.

If Trump can do whatever he wants without anyone checking him, what's to say the biggest and most prolific state in the country can't do the same? seems insane, but here we are.

1

u/_-Tabula_Rasa-_ 19h ago

I'd vote for him.

-1

u/WazWaz Australia 19h ago

Why would they? This is just posturing, for the reason you've identified. This doesn't help American consumers at all.

1

u/wecangetbetter 19h ago

nothing that's being done right now is helping the American consumer

what's one more bit of insanity

3

u/Tulipfarmer 19h ago

Exactly and I would be upset if my country followed this train of thought. There is no blue states and red states when all Canadians, and now the whole world, is suffering because of Trump's FEDERAL policies.

Get rid of the orange guy. Then we talk

1

u/Larovich153 17h ago

Look guy, we're hurtling towards civil war here, give us a minute

1

u/Tulipfarmer 14h ago

Sure. But don't ask for any favours from Canadians, regarding trade or anything else for that matter.

We are polite till we are not. elbows up!.... Guy

1

u/[deleted] 19h ago

[deleted]

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u/WazWaz Australia 19h ago

Refund to who? With what funds? The importer pays the tariff to the federal government, not the state. And imports can be trucked anywhere in the US (indeed, often are, from CA).

Anyway, read the article. It doesn't mention any of the things people seem to be fantasizing about.

1

u/Waesrdtfyg0987 Northern Marianas 18h ago

Nothing wrong with fantasizing. It's reddit we have zero influence on any of this.

1

u/WazWaz Australia 13h ago

That belief is exactly why fantasizing is so bad for you.

1

u/sniper1rfa 18h ago

Sure we can, the ports are in california. If the ships come in and unload without paying the tariff, then the tariff has been avoided. Foreign tariffs can obviously target anything they like.

What's trump gonna do, bomb the ports?

1

u/WazWaz Australia 13h ago

That's called smuggling; no, he'll just send in CBP police - you think he'd not? He'd relish the idea.

Read the article, it's not talking about anything like that, it's about exports. The more I realise how few people read the article before letting their imagination run wild, the more I suspect this is Newsom just posing.